Athletics at the 1920 Antwerpen Summer Games:

The championship was supposed to be decided between Matt McGrath, the 1912 Olympic champion, and Paddy Ryan, both of the United States. Between 1908 and 1926, Ryan or McGrath won 15 of the 19 AAU Championships, with Ryan winning eight and McGrath winning seven. But McGrath injured his knee in the second round and had to withdraw. This left Ryan unchallenged and he won easily. Some sources state that Tom Nicolson arrived late and did not compete in the qualifying and a petition by the other contestants allowed him to compete in the finals. However, only six athletes competed in the finals, and Nicolson was listed as having recorded a qualifying mark in one source. Ryan did not approach his own world record of 57.77 (set in 1913), nor did he challenge McGrath’s Olympic record of 54.74.